Witch
A sorcerer,Witch,magician,wiccan or wizard is a being who practices and harnesses the art of Magic. Wicca (pronounced [ˈwɪkə]) is a Neopagan religion and a form of modern witchcraft. It is often referred to as Witchcraft or the Craft[1] by its adherents, who are known as Wiccans or Witches. Its disputed origins lie in England in the early 20th century,[2] though it was first popularised during the 1950s by Gerald Gardner, a retired British civil servant, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft", and its adherents "the Wica".[3] From the 1960s the name of the religion was normalised to "Wicca".[4] Wicca is typically a duotheistic religion, worshipping a Goddess and a God, who are traditionally viewed as the Triple Goddess and Horned God. These two deities are often viewed as being facets of a greater pantheistic Godhead, and as manifesting themselves as various polytheistic deities. Nonetheless, there are also other theological positions within the Craft, ranging from monotheism to atheism. Wicca also involves the ritual practice of magic, largely influenced by the ceremonial magic of previous centuries, often in conjunction with a liberal code of morality known as the Wiccan Rede, although this is not adhered to by all Witches. Another characteristic of the Craft is the celebration of seasonally based festivals known as Sabbats, of which there are usually eight in number annually. There are various different denominations within Witchcraft, which are referred to as traditions. Some, such as Gardnerian and Alexandrian Wicca, follow in the initiatory lineage of Gardner; these are often collectively termed British Traditional Wicca, and many of their practitioners consider the term "Wicca" to apply only to these lineaged traditions. Others, such as Cochrane's Craft, Feri and the Dianic tradition, take primary influence from other figures and may not insist on any initiatory lineage. Some of these do not use the term "Wicca" at all, instead preferring to be referred to only as "Witchcraft", while others believe that all traditions can be considered "Wiccan. Powers & Abilities: Besides using spells to bestow and grant powers, witches and sorcerers possess the natural powers of wiccans which includes: *'Spell Casting:' The ability to cast magical spells *'Magicka:' The ability to harness defensive or offensive power spells *[[Scrying:|'Scrying:']] The ability to use a map and a necklace or valuable to track down and locate beings *[[Spells#Potion Spells|'Potion Making:']] The ability to create magical potions from ingredients *'Levitation/Hovering: '''The ability to compact psi energies into hovering or even levitating *'Magical Zapping:' The ability to magically zap objects to cause magic effects ( Human to frog etc), Is also the power to create a blast of energy from body or magical tool *'Clairvoyance: 'The ability to percieve information and or future events by mentally linking to another being Etymology Through late 14th century Old French ''magique, the word "magic" derives via Latin magicus from the Greek adjective magikos (μαγικός) used in reference to the "magical" arts of the Magicians (Greek: magoi, singular mágos, μάγος); the Zoroastrian astrologer priests. Greek mágos is first attested in Heraclitus (6th century BC, apud. Clement Protrepticus 12) who curses the Magians and others for their "impious rites". Greek magikos is attested from the 1st century Plutarch, typically appearing in the feminine, in μαγική τέχνη (magike techne, Latin ars magica) "magical art".[citation needed] Likewise, sorcery was taken in ca. 1300 from Old French sorcerie, which is from Vulgar Latin *sortiarius, from sors "fate", apparently meaning "one who influences fate". Sorceress appears also in the late 14th century, while sorcerer is attested only from 1526.[citation needed] http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=2 edit Common features of magical practice http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=3 edit Rituals Magical rituals are the precisely defined actions (including speech) used to work magic. Bronisław Malinowski describes ritual language as possessing a high “coefficient of weirdness,” by which he means that the language used in ritual is archaic and out of the ordinary, which helps foster the proper mindset to believe in the ritual.[6] S. J. Tambiah notes, however, that even if the power of the ritual is said to reside in the words, “the words only become effective if uttered in a very special context of other action.”[7] These other actions typically consist of gestures, possibly performed with special objects at a particular place or time. Object, location, and performer may require purification beforehand. This caveat draws a parallel to the felicity conditions J. L. Austin requires of performative utterances.[8] By “performativity” Austin means that the ritual act itself achieves the stated goal. For example, a wedding ceremony can be understood as a ritual, and only by properly performing the ritual does the marriage occur. Émile Durkheim stresses the importance of rituals as a tool to achieve “collective effervescence,” which serves to help unify society. Psychologists, on the other hand, describe rituals in comparison to obsessive-compulsive rituals, noting that attentional focus falls on the lower level representation of simple gestures.[9] This results in goal demotion, as the ritual places more emphasis on performing the ritual just right than on the connection between the ritual and the goal. However, the purpose of ritual is to act as a focus and the effect will vary depending on the individual. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=4 edit Magical symbols Magic often utilizes symbols that are thought to be intrinsically efficacious. Anthropologists, such as Sir James Frazer (1854–1938), have characterized the implementation of symbols into two primary categories: the “principle of similarity,” and the “principle of contagion.” Frazer further categorized these principles as falling under “sympathetic magic,” and “contagious magic.” Frazer asserted that these concepts were “general or generic laws of thought, which were misapplied in magic.”[10] http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=5 edit The Principle of Similarity The principle of similarity, also known as the “association of ideas,” which falls under the category of “sympathetic magic,” is the thought that if a certain result follows a certain action, then that action must be responsible for the result. Therefore, if one is to perform this action again, the same result can again be expected. One classic example of this mode of thought is that of the rooster and the sunrise. When a rooster crows, it is a response to the rising of the sun. Based on sympathetic magic, one might interpret these series of events differently. The law of similarity would suggest that since the sunrise follows the crowing of the rooster, the rooster must have caused the sun to rise.[11] Causality is inferred where it should not have been. Therefore, a practitioner might believe that if he is able to cause the rooster to crow, he will be able to control the timing of the sunrise. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=6 edit The Principle of Contagion Another primary type of magical thinking includes the principle of contagion. This principle suggests that once two objects come into contact with each other, they will continue to affect each other even after the contact between them has been broken. One example that Tambiah gives is related to adoption. Among some American Indians, for example, when a child is adopted his or her adoptive mother will pull the child through some of her clothes, symbolically representing the birth process and thereby associating the child with herself.[12] Therefore, the child emotionally becomes hers even though their relationship is not biological. As Claude Lévi-Strauss would put it: the birth “would consist, therefore, in making explicit a situation originally existing on the emotional level and in rendering acceptable to the mind pains which the body refuses to tolerate…the woman believes in the myth and belongs to a society which believes in it.”[13] Symbols, for many cultures that utilize magic, are seen as a type of technology. Natives might use symbols and symbolic actions to bring about change and improvements, much like Western cultures might use advanced irrigation techniques to promote soil fertility and crop growth. Michael Brown discusses the use of nantag stones among the Aguaruna as being similar to this type of “technology.”[14] These stones are brought into contact with stem cuttings of plants like manioc before they are planted in an effort to promote growth. Nantag are powerful, tangible symbols of fertility, so they are brought into contact with crops in order to transmit their fertility to the plants. Others argue that ritualistic actions are merely therapeutic. Tambiah cites the example of a native hitting the ground with a stick. While some may interpret this action as symbolic (i.e. the man is trying to make the ground yield crops through force), others would simply see a man unleashing his frustration at poor crop returns. Ultimately, whether or not an action is symbolic depends upon the context of the situation as well as the ontology of the culture. Many symbolic actions are derived from mythology and unique associations, whereas other ritualistic actions are just simple expressions of emotion and are not intended to enact any type of change. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=7 edit Magical language The performance of magic almost always involves the use of language (in Western civilization, mainly Latin). Whether spoken out loud or unspoken, words are frequently used to access or guide magical power. In "The Magical Power of Words" (1968) S. J. Tambiah argues that the connection between language and magic is due to a belief in the inherent ability of words to influence the universe. Bronsilaw Malinowski, in Coral Gardens and their Magic (1935), suggests that this belief is an extension of man’s basic use of language to describe his surroundings, in which “the knowledge of the right words, appropriate phrases and the more highly developed forms of speech, gives man a power over and above his own limited field of personal action.”[15] Magical speech is therefore a ritual act and is of equal or even greater importance to the performance of magic than non-verbal acts.[16] Yet not all speech is considered magical. Only certain words and phrases or words spoken in a specific context are considered to have magical power.[17] Magical language, according to C. K. Ogden and I. A. Richards's (1923) categories of speech, is distinct from scientific language because it is emotive and it converts words into symbols for emotions; whereas in scientific language words are tied to specific meanings and refer to an objective external reality.[18] Magical language is therefore particularly adept at constructing metaphors that establish symbols and link magical rituals to the world.[19] Malinowski argues that “the language of magic is sacred, set and used for an entirely different purpose to that of ordinary life.”[20] The two forms of language are differentiated through word choice, grammar, style, or by the use of specific phrases or forms: prayers, spells, songs, blessings, or chants, for example. Sacred modes of language often employ archaic words and forms in an attempt to invoke the purity or “truth” of a religious or a cultural ‘golden age.’ The use of Hebrew in Judaism is an example.[21] Another potential source of the power of words is their secrecy and exclusivity. Much sacred language is differentiated enough from common language that it is incomprehensible to the majority of the population and it can only be used and interpreted by specialized practitioners, (magicians, priests, shamans, even mullahs.).[22][23] In this respect, Tambiah argues that magical languages violate the primary function of language: communication.[24] Yet adherents of magic are still able to use and to value the magical function of words by believing in the inherent power of the words themselves and in the meaning that they must provide for those who do understand them. This leads Tambiah to conclude that “the remarkable disjunction between sacred and profane language which exists as a general fact is not necessarily linked to the need to embody sacred words in an exclusive language.”[21] http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=8 edit Magicians Main article: Magician (paranormal)A magician is any practitioner of magic; therefore a magician may be a specialist or a common practitioner, even if he or she does not consider himself a magician.[25] All that is required is the possession of esoteric knowledge, traits, or expertise that are culturally acknowledged to harbor magical powers. Magical knowledge is usually passed down from one magician to another through family or apprenticeships, though in some cultures it may also be purchased[26]. The information transferred usually consists of instructions on how to perform a variety of rituals, manipulate magical objects, or how to appeal to gods or to other supernatural forces. Magical knowledge is often well guarded, as it is a valuable commodity to which each magician believes that he has a proprietary right.[27] Yet the possession of magical knowledge alone may be insufficient to grant magical power; often a person must also possess certain magical objects, traits or life experiences in order to be a magician. Among the Azande, for example, in order to question an oracle a man must have both the physical oracle (poison, or a washboard, for example) and knowledge of the words and the rites needed to make the object function.[26] A variety of personal traits may be credited to magical power, though frequently they are associated with an unusual birth into the world.[28] For example, in 16th century Friuli, babies born with the caul were believed to be good witches, benandanti, who would engage evil witches in nighttime battles over the bounty of the next year’s crops.[29] Certain post-birth experiences may also be believed to convey magical power. For example a person’s survival of a near-death illness may be taken as evidence of their power as a healer: in Bali a medium’s survival is proof of her association with a patron deity and therefore her ability to communicate with other gods and spirits.[30] Initiations are perhaps the most commonly used ceremonies to establish and to differentiate magicians from common people. In these rites the magician’s relationship to the supernatural and his entry into a closed professional class is established, often through rituals that simulate death and rebirth into a new life.[31] Given the exclusivity of the criteria needed to become a magician, much magic is performed by specialists.[32] Laypeople will likely have some simple magical rituals for everyday living, but in situations of particular importance, especially when health or major life events are concerned, a specialist magician will often be consulted.[33] The powers of both specialist and common magicians are determined by culturally accepted standards of the sources and the breadth of magic. A magician may not simply invent or claim new magic; the magician is only as powerful as his peers believe him to be.[34] In different cultures, various types of magicians may be differentiated based on their abilities, their sources of power, and on moral considerations, including divisions into different categories like sorcerer, witch, healer and others. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Magic_%28paranormal%29&action=edit&section=9 edit Witchcraft Main article: WitchcraftIn non-scientific societies, perceived magical attack is an ideology sometimes employed to explain personal or societal misfortune.[35] In anthropological and historical contexts this is often termed witchcraft or sorcery, and the perceived attackers 'witches' or 'sorcerers'. Their maleficium is often seen as a biological trait or an acquired skill.[36] Known members of the community may be accused as witches, or the witches may be perceived as supernatural, non-human entities.[37] In early modern Europe and Britain such accusations led to the executions of tens of thousands of people, who were seen to be in league with Satan. Those accused of being satanic 'witches' were often practitioners of (usually benign) folk magic,[38] and the English term 'witch' was also sometimes used without its pejorative sense to describe such practitioners.[39] Known Witches and Sorcerers: Sorcerers: A *Aalto, Simo *Abbot, David *Acer, David *Ackerman, Allan *Adams, Curtis *Angel,Criss *Aich, Jewel *Alexander, C. A. (Claude Alexander Conlin) *Alexander, Jay *Ammar, Michael *Anderson, Harry *Anderson, John Henry *Andrus, Jerry *Andruzzi, Tony *Angel, Criss (Christopher Sarantakos) *Annemann, Theodore (Theodore John Squires) *Atkins, Jefferey http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=2 edit B *Balducci, Ed *Ballantine, Carl (Meyer Kessler) *Bamberg II, David Tobias (Fu Manchu) *Bamberg, Tobias *Banachek (Steven Shaw) *Barry and Stuart (Barry Jones & Stuart MacLeod) *Barry, Keith *Becker, Herbert L. *Black, Arian *Blackstone, Gay *Blackstone, Harry, Sr. *Blackstone, Harry, Jr. *Blaine, David *Bobo, J.B. *Bongo, Ali (William Oliver Wallace) *Brown, Derren *Buchinger, Matthias *Burger, Eugene *Burton, Lance *Bux, Kuda (Khuda Bakhsh) *Brian Brushwood http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=3 edit C *Cagliostro, Alessandro *Cairns, Mark *Caldwell, Mike *Calvert, John (Elbern Madren Calvert) *Cameron, Charles *Canuplin *Cardini (Richard D. Pitchford) *Carnegie, Dean *Carney, John *Chan, Dan *Carter, Charles Joseph *Chef Anton *Chen, Juliana *Christopher, Milbourne *Coby, Rudy *Cohen, Steve *Comus (Ledru, Nicolas-Philippe) *Cook, Ali *Cooper, Tommy *Copperfield, David (David Kotkin) *Corinda, Tony *Cox,Chris *Curry, Paul http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=4 edit D *Daniels, Paul (Newton Edward Daniels) *Daryl (Daryl Easton, Daryl Martinez) *Davenport, William Henry and Erastus, Ira *Davenport, Lewis (George Ryan) *Dean, Jason *Dedi *De Kolta, Buatier *Devant, David (David Wellington or David Wighton) *Diaconis, Persi *Don Alfredo *Dietrich, Dorothy *Dill, Dean *Dingle, Derek *Downs, Thomas Nelson *Drake, Simon *Dunninger, Joseph *Durham, Geoffrey *Dynamo (Steven Frayne) http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=5 edit E *El Bayed, Ahmed *Elmsley, Alex *Erdnase, S. W. *Ellis, Tim http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=6 edit F *Fakir of Ava (Isaiah Harris Hughes) *Ferguson, Rich *Finney, Michael *Fischbacher, Siegfried, see Siegfried & Roy *Fitzkee, Dariel *Foo, Ching Ling (Chee Ling Qua) *Freedman, James *Frewin, Greg *Farla, Christian http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=7 edit G *Ganson, Lewis *Garcia, Frank *Gardner, Martin *Geller, Uri *Gertner, Paul *Gibson, Walter B. *Gladwin, Andi *Gray, Will *Green, Lennart *Goldin, Horace *Goldston, Will *Gordon, Paul http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=8 edit H *Harary, Franz *Hamman, Br. John *Harris, Paul *Hatfield, Murray and Teresa *Henning, Doug *Herrmann, Alexander *Hilliard, John Northern *Houdini, Harry (Ehrich Weiss) *Hugard, Jean http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=9 edit I *Interrante, Scott http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=10 edit J *James, Kevin *James, Rob *Jay, Joshua *Jay, Ricky (Ricky Potash) *Jennings, Larry *Jillette, Penn, see also Penn & Teller *Johnson, Kristen *Jonathan, The Amazing (John Edward Szeles) *Jones, Barry *Jordan, Charles] http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=11 edit K *Kaps, Fred (Abraham Pieter Adrianus Bongers) *Katterfelto, Gustavus *Kellar, Harry (Heinrich Keller) *Keith Barry (Keith Barry) *Kieve, Paul *King, Mac *Emil Kio (Emil Teodorovich Girshfeld-Renard) *Kio, Igor (Igor Emilievich Renard Kio) *Klok, Hans *De Kolta, Buatier (Joseph Bautier) *Kole, André *Koran, Al (Edward Doe) *Kredible, Justin *Kreskin (George Joseph Kresge, Jr.) *Kurts, Gary http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=12 edit L *Labero, Joe *Laflin, Duane *Lavand, René *Lean, Owen: See Roadmage *Lee, Misty *Leifer, Debbie *Lorayne, Harry *Lovell, Simon *Lu, Chen *Levi, Eliphas http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=13 edit M *Magic Babe Ning *Macleod, Stuart *Magic Christian *Majax, Gérard (Gérard Fater) *Malini, Max (Max Katz Breit) *Malone, Bill *Mandrake, Leon *Marcy, Matt *Marlo, Ed *Marshall, Jay (James Ward Marshall) *Marvey, Peter *Masked Magician: see Val Valentino *Maskelyne, Jasper *Maskelyne, John Nevil *Masklyn ye Mage: see Tony Andruzzi *Matt the Knife *Maven, Max (Phil Goldstein) *Mayne, Andrew *McBride, Jeff *McComb, Billy *Méliès, Georges *Menna, Lisa *Minkin, David *Money-Coutts, Drummond *Moore, Alan *Morgan The Escapist *Mulhern, Stephen *Munoz, Oscar *Muthukad, Gopinath http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=14 edit N *Nixon, David *Nyman, Andy http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=15 edit O *Ogawa, Shoot *Okito (Tobias Bamberg) *Oliver, David *Orleans, Danny *Ortiz, Darwin *Osterlind, Richard http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=16 edit P *Palladino, Eusapia (Minerverno Murge) *Palmer, Johnny "Ace" *Alex Patterson *Pendragons (Jonathan and Charlotte Pendragon) *Penn & Teller (see also Penn Jillette and Teller) *Penrose, Scott *Philadelphia, Jacob (Jacob Meyer) *Pinetti, Joseph (Joseph Pinetti Willedall de Merci) *Polgar, Franz *Pollock, Channing *Presto, Fay http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=17 edit Q http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=18 edit R *Randi, James (Randall James Hamilton Zwinge) *Reveen, Peter *Roadmage (Owen Lean) *Robert, Étienne-Gaspard *Robert-Houdin, Jean Eugène *Robinson, William Ellsworth: see Chung Ling Soo *Romany, the Diva of Magic *Rodolfo, Gács Rezső *Role, Brian *Roth, David http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=19 edit S *Sadowitz, Jerry *Salwak, Dale *Sam, Long Tack *Sankey, Jay *Saville, Ian *Scarne, John (Orlando Carmelo Scarnecchia) *Schwarzman, Howie *Selbit, P. T. (Percy Thomas Tibbles) *Shaxon, Alan (Alan Arthur Howson) *Sheridan, Jeff *Siegfried & Roy (Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn) *Silano, Rocco *Slydini, Tony (Quintino Marucci) *Solomon, Thomas *Soma *Soo, Chung Ling (William Ellsworth Robinson) *Sorcar, P. C. (Protul Chandra Sarcar) *Sorcar, P. C. Jr. (Prodip Chandra Sarcar) *Steiner, Robert *Steinmeyer, Jim *Stone, Tom *Sum, J C *Swiss, Jamy Ian *Sylvester the Jester http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=20 edit T *Takayama, Cyril *Tamariz, Juan (Tamariz-Martel Negrón) *Tarbell, Harlan *Teller (Raymond Joseph Teller): see also Penn & Teller *Tenko, Princess (Mariko Itakura) *Thomas, Garrett *Thurston, Howard *Tobin, Neil *Turner, Richard http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=21 edit U http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=22 edit V *Valentino, Val (The Masked Magician) *Vernon, Dai (David Frederick Wingfield Verner) http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=23 edit W *Walker, Val *Walton, Roy *Welles, Orson *Willard, Frances *Williamson, David *Wilson, Gregory *Wilson, Mark *Wind, Tommy *Wonder, Tommy (Jacobus Maria Bemelman) http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=24 edit Y http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_magicians&action=edit&section=25 edit Z *The Zancigs *Zarrow, Herb *Zenon, Paul Witches: Category:Magical Mythology Category:Spellbook & Witchcraft